English 155 (Hatton): RefWorks / Citing Sources

RefWorks is a citation management software tool available to UC Merced students, faculty and staff. RefWorks helps you ...

• manage your research materials.
• create bibliographies.
• generate in-text citations. (Word, Google Docs)
• annotate articles.
• share references / documents with others.

See information on the new RefWorks interface.

Big Picture

• MLA style features in-text parenthetical citations and a corresponding Works Cited page.  Some publishers may ask for endnotes/footnotes rather than parenthetical citations.

In-Text Citations

Use for quotes, paraphrases and summaries

• Basic format includes author's last name followed by page number(s) - Example: (Patel 245)
• Author name may be excluded if in the introductory text - Example: Patel found that …. “ “ (245).
• If referring to two authors of the same text, join last names with and. Example: (Jones and Rhett 119)
• If no author, use the first part of the citation found in the Works Cited - Example: (National Committee 37)
• If referring to more than one source in the same citation, separate with a semi-colon - Example: (Davidson 18-20; Simmons 302)

MLA In-Text Citations: The Basics (Purdue OWL)

Work Cited List

• Order citations alphabetically (typically by author's last name)
• Include hanging indent after the first line
• Place quotation marks around sources in containers e.g. poem, short story, journal article etc.
• Italicize sources for stand-alone items e.g. novel, play, journal publication, book etc.
• Capitalize main words in a title
• Format author in citations as follows:
  • one author includes last name, first name. Example: Reddy, Anisha
  • two authors includes last name, first name and first name last name. Example:  Reddy, Anisha and Nate Conner. 
  • three authors includes last name, first name, et al. Example: Jones, Steve, et al.
• DOIs are preferred over URLs.  When using an URL, remove http:// or https://  Example:  doi:10.1002/tox.20155

MLA Works Cited Page: Basic Format (Purdue, OWL)

These examples, using MLA 8th ed., illustrate the order of information you should include and do not include hanging indents or double spacing. To see sample references on a Works Cited page, view the MLA Sample Paper at Purdue Online Writing Lab (OWL).

Please find some examples of MLA citations:

James Baldwin Folder in Princeton's Toni Morrison Papers:

Baldwin, James; Toni Morrison Papers, C1491, Manuscripts Division, Department of Special Collections, Princeton University Library.

National Portrait Gallery Toni Morrison image:

McCurdy, Robert. Portrait of Toni Morrison, oil on canvas. 2006. National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution; on loan from Ian and Annette Cumming. https://npg.si.edu/exhibition/memoriam-toni-morrison.

Toni Morrison lecture:

Morrison, Toni. "Goodness: Altruism and the Literary Imagination." Harvard Divinity School Ingersoll Lecture on Immortality, December 6, 2012, https://hds.harvard.edu/news/2012/12/11/goodness-altruism-and-literary-imagination. 

Each discipline has a preferred citation style.  Various websites point to the desired citation style for each discipline.